Hosiery



W. DE MON D Feb. 14, 1956 HOSIERY 2 Sheets-Sheet l mZDN wmkbou IPW- IUQm kwkue.

Filed June 23, 1952 mwkDQU mWOO.. H WwmEBOU Feb. 14, 1956 w, DE MOND 2,734,363

HOSIERY Filed June 23, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ZONE M 2o COURSES: i LUoSE COURSE AFTER EncH .2ND COURSE ZONE N 1Q COURSES: iLooSE COURSE AFTER EACH 4TH COURSE ZONE O 60 COURSES: MOOSE COURSE AFTER EACH 6TH COURSE ZONE P @a COURSES: moose COURSE AFTER EACH 8TH couRsE United States Patent lThis .invention relates to 'womens 'hosiery and partictilarly `to` an iijnproved :form characterized by having greater elasticity and consequently a more comfortable tit at thewelt,'heel and tueportion'sthereof-` The principal bjCCt ofthe invention is 'to provide a stocking having welt, heel and toeportions vformed with progressively looser or closer knitting along their lengths. Another object of the invention 'is to provide ,a stocking having a leg portion of uniform knitting 'topped by a welt Y having a relatively loose knitted construction at vthe upper end Athereof and becomingprogressively closer knit as it approaches the juncture with the body portion.

Aurther object of the invention is Ito provide a stockinghaving 4a Aheel'portion of looser knitted construction than thebody Aor leg portion .and being progressively looser :from lthe back of the heel.v portion yto the bottom thereof.

Still another object of the invention is' 'to provide a stocking .having a toeportion of looser construction than thelegportion thereofi'th'e upper part of -said toeportion being of progressively looser Vconstruction towards the end ofthe toe and the lower part .thereof being of progressively closer construction toward the end of the vtoe portion.

A still further object of the invent-ion is vtojzirovide a stocking havingV an increased `capacity `for longitudinal stretch with resnltant reduction of danger of vbreaking of threads under stresses :imposed by "bending of the knee ofthewea-rer. l i v y v L Still;,another object of the inventionl is to provide a stockingV having greater capacity fornlaternl stretch =at'the toeiandxheelgiortions. ffy@ Still another object of the invention is to provide a stocking having improved gripping engagement with the inner sole of a shoe.

With the foregoing objects in view, together with such other objects and advantages as may subsequently appear, the invention resides in the provision of a stocking having welt, heel and toe portions of looser knitted construction than other parts thereof and within said welt, heel and toe portions being knitted with progressively changing degrees of tightness along the length thereof as disclosed, by way of example in the following specification of a mode of execution of the invention; reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings which form a part of said specification and in which drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevation of a stocking embodying the present invention and showing the point of beginning of the fashion marks made by the dropping out of needles starting in thewelt portion.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, schematic, side elevation of a portion of the welt of the stocking shown in Fig. l and designating the character of the various zones comprising the welt, v

Fig. 2a is a smaller scale view than Fig. 2 showing the relation of the welt zones for a -double thickness weltas knitted and before the welt is doubled back on itself,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, schematic side elevation of the interposed loose courses.

p 2,734,363 Patented Feb. `14, 195.6

2 toe portion of the stocking .shown in Fig. l and designating the'various zones of knitting comprising the toe,

Fig. 4 is an 'enlarged schematic side elevation of the heel portion ofthe .stocking shown in Fig. l and designating the various zones of "knitting comprising 'the heel, v Fig. 5 is a greatly .enlarged schematic representation of the character of knitting comprising zones G, l. and M in the preceding figures, Y Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. .5 but showing the char acter of 'knitting in zones A, H, `K and N,

Fig 7 is a'view similar .to Fig. 5 Vbut showing `the character of knitting in zones B, I, ll and O,

Fig. 8 is a View similar to Fig. 5 but showing the char acterof knitting in zones C and P, and v n Figs. 9, l0 and ll are views similar to Fig. 5 Abut showice ling the character of vknitting in zones D, E andi?, respectively.

Referring to the drawings, the illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises a stocking having .a we'lt portion 1, a body or leg and foot portion 2, aheel portion V3 and a toe portion 4. The stockingmay be formed as a full fashioned stocking which is flat knit and thereafter seamed together, orit may be of circular knit, seamless construction.l The welt maybe .the conventional double thickness welt formed by knitting the welt portion double the finished length and thereafter folding it on itself and attaching the end thereof to the Tbody of the stocking, or it may be of single thickness only. Both ,types ofconstruction are well'known in the art.

'in .thc present invention, the welt is formed lby knitting the .material in a series of zones of gradually increasing tightness from the end thereof .to the juncture with the body v,portion 2. ln Fig. 2, by way of example, the zones are designated by the lettersA to F, inclusive. Y

'Zone A is shown as composed of 4.0 tight courses .of knitting with one `loose course being formed after each fourth tight course, .'Zone B with 48 tight courses with one loose course after cachsixth tight course, zone-C with 48 Vtight courses with one loose course after each eighth tightcourse, 'Zone 'D with 210 tight `courses with one loose course after each tenth `tight course, VzoneE with 24 tight courses withV one loose course. after 'each .twelfth -tight course and 'zone F with 28 tight courses with one ,loose course after each fourteenth tight course. ln the fore going description and in all ,subsequent descriptions herein, the term tight course refers to knitting of the regular degree of tightness or closeness as distinguished from the Diagrammatic representations of `the character of knitting for zones A to F, inclusive are shown in Figs. 6 to l1, inclusive, respectively. The tapering of the upper portion of the stocking effected by dropping out pairs of needles may start in the welt portion as indicated by the fashion marks 5 in Fig. l.

For stockings with a turned welt, the foregoing zones are knitted in reverse order as indicated by the zones F' to A', inclusive, in Fig. 2a and at the end of the zone A the zones A to F are knitted and the first portion comprising the zones F to A is turned down against the latter portion of the welt and secured thereto thus forming a double Welt comprised of identical zones disposed opposite each other.

The knittingthen proceeds in the usual manner until the heel portion is reached at which point the heel is formed in progressively less loose fconstruction as the knitting proceeds toward the toe; the portion of the stocking extending over the arch of the foot being knitted the same as the leg portion. By way of example, a typical heel portion formed according to the presentinvention is shown in Fig. 4 comprising four zones designated M, N, O and P. Zone M is comprised of 20 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each two tight courses, zone N comprises 40 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each fourth tight course, zone O comprises 60 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each sixth tight course, and zone P comprises 64 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each eighth tight course. The character of knitting of these zones is shown in Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8, respectively.

The knitting then proceeds to the toe portion which is formed of kanother series of tight and loose courses. By way of example, a typical toe portion of a stocking knitted according to the present invention is shown in Fig. 3 comprising zones G, H and I for the upper portion of the toe and zones I, K and L for the lower portion of the toe. Zones G, H and I are of progressively less loose character as they progress toward the end of the toe, while zones l, K and L are of progressively looser character in the same direction. Zones G and L are each composed of tight courses with one loose course interposed after each two tight courses, zonesH and K are each composed of 80 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each fourth tight course, and zones I and .l are each composed of 120 tight courses with one loose course interposed after each sixth tight course. The character of the knitting of the above zones is shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7.

Several advantages result from the above described construction. First the welt being of looser construction fits the thigh of the wearer more comfortably and with the tapering effect achieved by dropping out needles extending up into the welt a better t is assured. Second, the presence of the loose courses gives the stocking more longitudinal stretch and thus serves to prevent the breaking of threads and consequent runs when the stocking is stretched over the bent knee of the wearer; said runs occurring both in the welt below the garter grips and over the knee. Third, the looser construction of the heel assists both in resisting the above described breaking of threads and in allowing the stocking to more comfortably fit the foot and especially in those cases in which the circumference of the heel and arch of the foot is greater than can be comfortably accommodated by stockings designed for foot size alone. Fourth, the loose construction of the toe portion permits a more comfortable fit than stockings heretofore available with the capacity to lit small or narrow feet as well as wide foot widths. Fifth, the looser construction of the heel and toe portions provides a nonskid grip with the inner sole of high heeled shoes which makes the wearing of such shoes more comfortable for the wearer since there is less tendency for the foot to slide forward in the shoe with resultant pressure on the toes.

While by way of specific example, a typical stocking formed according to the present invention has been described, it will be realized that the exact numbers of tight and loose courses above specified are not critical and that they may be varied to suit the desires of the individual designer and the particular ranges of foot and leg sizes intended to be accommodated by any one size of stocking. The above described proportions of tight and loose stitches are set forth as an optimum combination for general usage.

I claim:

A knitted stocking comprising a folded, two ply welt portion, a leg portion, a foot portion, a heel portion and a toe portion; said leg and foot portions comprising knitted courses of uniform tightness and said welt, heel and toe portions being formed of tight and loose courses; each of said plies of said welt portion comprising identical transversely disposed zones and each of said zones comprising a plurality of courses of uniformly tighter stitches connected by single courses of looser stitches and each of said zones having a lesser proportion of loose courses to tighter courses as they approach the juncture of said welt and leg portions; said heel portion comprising a plurality of zones each composed of a plurality of courses of uniform tightness arranged in groups connected by single courses of looser stitches and the proportion of said tighter courses to said looser courses in each zone decreasing as said zones are disposed farther away from the back of said heel portion, and said toe portion comprising a plurality of transverse zones ycomprising the top of said toe portion and another plurality of transverse zones comprising the bottom of said toe portion; each of said zones comprising a plurality of groups of courses of uniform tightness with single courses of looser stitches interposed between and connecting adjacent groups in the same or in adjacent zones; the proportion of said tight to loose courses in any one zone being increasingly greater as the zones comprising the top of said toe portion are located nearer to the end of the said toe portion and said proportion of tight to loose stitches being increasingly greater as the zones comprising the bottom of said toe portion are more remote from said end of said toe portion.

References Cited inthe file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,890,299 Mutchler et al Dec. 6, 1932 2,125,114 Kugelman July 26, 1938 2,148,836 Quinn Feb. 28, 1939 2,219,790 Quinn Oct. 29, 1940 

